Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Is This Really Necessary?

Look, I get that we're all giving up out liberties to be "safer" in the skies because we are a fearful nation led by fear mongers. We can't let the terrorists win. Thank Jebus we all get scanned and groped in endless TSA lines so we can be assured that there are no jihadists on our flights while sections of fuselage get ripped off airplanes at 37,000 feet and planes collide on the tarmac.

But is it really necessary for the TSA to pull a 6-year old girl aside for their enhanced pat downs?



To the TSA officer's credit, she sounded very friendly and explained exactly what she was doing to the girl so as to not alarm her. But why do it in the first place? What supervisor told her to pull the child aside for the pat down? Is she trying to smuggle a Tickle Me Elmo doll on the fight? Was their something amiss with her juice box? This is the kind of incident that shows the ineptitude and utter waste of time the current TSA practices are as they stand.

I have no problem walking through metal detectors or having trained officers keeping an eye out for what they may deem legitimate threats - terrorist, drug smuggler, or otherwise. But a 6-year old kid? Really?

1 comment:

Broadway Carl said...

I wish I could, Lynn. But living on the east coast with a 10½ month old while mommy's grandparents live in Ohio doesn't make a flying boycott possible.

Trust me, I've had run ins with TSA before, being pulled out of line for FWNC (Flying While Not Caucasian). And as my name is similar to someone on the no fly list, I can't check in online. If I go out of the country, I'm sure to be detained by Homeland Security on the way back in, but ultimately it's not the TSA employees' fault. And I have to remember that when I'm about to blow a gasket when I see some authoritarian chest thumping. It's the government and the ridiculousness of their restrictions and their useless watch lists.

 
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